Cassia Capital Partners LLC Has $761,000 Stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX)

Cassia Capital Partners LLC reduced its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:VRTX) by 7.4% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,637 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock after selling 131 shares during the period. Cassia Capital Partners LLC’s holdings in Vertex Pharmaceuticals were worth $761,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in VRTX. Capital World Investors increased its position in shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 17.2% during the first quarter. Capital World Investors now owns 25,567,184 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $10,687,339,000 after acquiring an additional 3,761,414 shares in the last quarter. Capital Research Global Investors lifted its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 61.0% in the 1st quarter. Capital Research Global Investors now owns 5,743,882 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $2,401,000,000 after purchasing an additional 2,176,218 shares in the last quarter. Jennison Associates LLC lifted its stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals by 21.2% in the 1st quarter. Jennison Associates LLC now owns 4,782,374 shares of the pharmaceutical company’s stock worth $1,999,080,000 after purchasing an additional 837,461 shares in the last quarter. Swedbank AB purchased a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 1st quarter worth approximately $277,317,000. Finally, AMF Tjanstepension AB purchased a new stake in Vertex Pharmaceuticals in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $257,655,000. 90.96% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

VRTX has been the topic of a number of research analyst reports. Bank of America decreased their price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $550.00 to $541.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 14th. Cantor Fitzgerald reissued an “overweight” rating and set a $480.00 price target on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research report on Tuesday, October 8th. Guggenheim raised their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $450.00 to $558.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, August 2nd. Canaccord Genuity Group raised their target price on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals from $371.00 to $376.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. Finally, Redburn Atlantic started coverage on shares of Vertex Pharmaceuticals in a research note on Thursday, June 27th. They set a “buy” rating and a $545.00 price objective for the company. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have issued a hold rating and seventeen have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $492.92.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Vertex Pharmaceuticals news, Director Bruce I. Sachs sold 5,295 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $508.00, for a total transaction of $2,689,860.00. Following the transaction, the director now owns 40,000 shares in the company, valued at $20,320,000. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. In other news, Director Bruce I. Sachs sold 5,295 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Thursday, August 1st. The shares were sold at an average price of $508.00, for a total value of $2,689,860.00. Following the transaction, the director now directly owns 40,000 shares in the company, valued at approximately $20,320,000. This represents a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Also, Chairman Jeffrey M. Leiden sold 3,784 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Friday, August 30th. The stock was sold at an average price of $499.00, for a total transaction of $1,888,216.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chairman now owns 9,994 shares in the company, valued at approximately $4,987,006. The trade was a 0.00 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Over the last 90 days, insiders have sold 14,285 shares of company stock worth $7,101,755. Insiders own 0.20% of the company’s stock.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Stock Performance

NASDAQ VRTX traded up $1.83 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $484.83. 303,782 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,173,532. The company has a current ratio of 2.52, a quick ratio of 2.26 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.02. Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 52 week low of $341.90 and a 52 week high of $510.64. The firm has a market capitalization of $125.13 billion, a P/E ratio of -237.93 and a beta of 0.40. The business’s fifty day moving average price is $475.21 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $460.23.

Vertex Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:VRTX) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, August 1st. The pharmaceutical company reported ($12.83) earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of ($12.54) by ($0.29). Vertex Pharmaceuticals had a negative net margin of 4.74% and a negative return on equity of 2.45%. The firm had revenue of $2.65 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $2.66 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm earned $3.53 EPS. Vertex Pharmaceuticals’s revenue for the quarter was up 6.1% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts predict that Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post -2.11 EPS for the current year.

About Vertex Pharmaceuticals

Vertex Pharmaceuticals Incorporated, a biotechnology company, engages in developing and commercializing therapies for treating cystic fibrosis (CF). It markets TRIKAFTA/KAFTRIO for people with CF with at least one F508del mutation for 2 years of age or older; SYMDEKO/SYMKEVI for people with CF for 6 years of age or older; ORKAMBI for CF patients 1 year or older; and KALYDECO for the treatment of patients with 1 year or older who have CF with ivacaftor.